Ripping on TS w/smaller piece next to fence

[Dan Mitchell]

I have 2 ~5.5" x 1.25" hard maple boards I want to rip into eight 1.25" square pieces for table legs. Typically, I would have done this with the larger width next to the fence, ripping off 1.25", then repositioning the fence 1 3/8" to the left (to account for the kerf) and ripping again. Seems safer that way. It sure would be easier though if I could just set the fence at 1.25", then rip with the wider (but progressively narrower) section of board to the left of the blade. Is there any reason I shouldn't do this? For one thing, given the desired pieces are only 1.25", with the guard in place, there's not much room to push the cut piece out from between fence and blade. The nuts on that side of the guard (PM2000) in particular stick out a fair distance toward the fence, making it even harder to get a push stick in there. I'm considering removing the guard on that side (which can be done with the design) to allow more room. Any comments?

TIA

Dan

[Eddie Darby]

Make an "L" shaped shoe, with the lower part of the "L" the 1.25 " that you need. This part will hook your piece of wood that is to be cut. Make the upright part of the "L" a few inches wide. You can glue a handle onto this part.

Now you can keep the fence at one setting, which will allow the width of the jig to just clear the blade. If you glued a push grip to the wide piece of the "L", then you can push your wood through with your hands clear of the blade area.

[Benoit Bissonnette]

Hi,

How about taking your square 1.25" x 1.25" pieces out of a longer piece so you can hold it securely. Why mess with short 5.5" long pieces? Working with such small pieces increases the chances of having an accident...

Just my 0.02$

Benoit

[Joshua Layne]

Are these rough rips or finish? It is very likely that the pieces will have some tension that will release when you rip them and you will need to subsequently joint them and finish rip them. If so, then why does it matter to move the fence? Yes, they won't be exactly all the same size, but in a rough cut, it doesn't matter.

my $0.02

[Dave Cav]

5" is pretty short to be ripping on a table saw. My general rule of thumb is about 12", or as long as the throat plate, for minimum length. The worst kickback I have had (resulted in an ER visit and stitches) was the result of ripping short pieces of oak about that size (but I wasn't using a splitter then).

On the other hand, ripping 1.25" wide strips should be no big deal. I would just take the blade guard off and use a tall shoe-type push stick. Absolutely keep the splitter/riving knife in place, though.

We just finished a cutting board project at school where the students were required to rip pieces of 3/4" (thick) alder into 1 1/2" wide by 14" long strips. Each student had to make 14 pieces, although some started with a 30 inch board and crosscut them. We just moved the over-arm blade guard over to the left to allow the push sticks to clear the blade guard, and went to work. Most of our push sticks (shoe type) are made from 1/2" CDX this year so there was plenty of room between the fence and blade.

Disclaimer: I never use a blade guard at home on either of my table saws, although I ALWAYS use a splitter when ripping. However, we always use the overarm guard at school.

[Paul Atkins]

If you are worried about the guard, take it off and set the fence for your 1 1/4 and rip away. There is probably more risk with the extra metal in the way and you fussing around it. If your rips were 3/8 or less then that is a different matter. My TS guard is 40 years old and still brand new - I wonder where it is--- Oh, I still have 9 3/4 fingers.

[Cody Colston]

I'm in the same camp with Dave. I see no issues with ripping 1.25" widths. As Dave wrote, simply remove the blade guard but do leave the splitter or riving knife in place. Use a push shoe to push the 1.25" keeper piece clear of the blade when making the cut.

When building the Hal Taylor rocking chair, I ripped a couple dozen or more 1/8" thick strips on the TS using a sacrificial push shoe. All the narrow cuts were on the fence side for consistency. That's how Hal recommended it be done and it worked beautifully. The portion of the blade that was above the stock cut a single groove in the push shoe but my hand was always well clear of the blade and I kept my body clear of any potential kickback path, although there was little to no danger of one occurring with that method.

In your case, you won't even need to sacrifice a 3/4" wide push shoe since the blade will be 1.25" away from the fence. Piece of cake.

[Dan Mitchell]

Hi,

How about taking your square 1.25" x 1.25" pieces out of a longer piece so you can hold it securely. Why mess with short 5.5" long pieces? Working with such small pieces increases the chances of having an accident...

Just my 0.02$

Benoit

To clarify, the boards are ~5.5" WIDE, they're 23" LONG (they are for table legs, after all ;-) Though I have to say, I have ripped fairly short pieces with confidence using a GRR-Ripper. I think I will just go ahead and do it sans guard, as suggested, but leaving the riving knife in place. I just thought there may be some other approach I was unaware of. In general, I like the guard on the PM2000. I had a Unisaw prior to this, that guard system was a real PITA and invited user removal, IMHO.

Thanks all for the replies.

Dan

[Joe Scharle]

I suggest that you make:



Or buy:



A taper sled.

[Paul Ryan]

If you are worried about the guard, take it off and set the fence for your 1 1/4 and rip away. There is probably more risk with the extra metal in the way and you fussing around it. If your rips were 3/8 or less then that is a different matter. My TS guard is 40 years old and still brand new - I wonder where it is--- Oh, I still have 9 3/4 fingers.

I couldn't agree more. Fussing around with the guard in the way and trying to figure out have to cut these pieces with the guard on is less safe than just taking the guard off. Use a good push shoe that rides on top of the piece of wood, not just a stick, they are unsafe. Then cut away. It is a good idea to use the guard when ever possible but this is a time the guard can be taken off.

[Conrad Fiore]

I'm with taking off the guard and using a push stick. Use a feather board against the piece just before the blade to hold it to the fence. You will have to move for each rip, but when you get down to the last cut, you can keep your left hand clear of the blade. I believe that this won't be the last time you will have to cut with the guard removed. Sometimes it is unavoidable. Just be sure to use push sticks, feather boards and hold downs to avoid having to get your hand too close. And be sure that when you rip, don't stand directly behind the part between the blade and the fence in the event you shoud have a kick-back.

[Peter Quinn]

My method?

Step One: Take factory guard off, throw in dumpster, replace splitter or riving knife as necessary. Remember not to shove your hands sideways into the blade. Do not reach across the running blade to grab a sandwich from the out feed table. Do not leave a sandwich on the outfeed table.

Step Two: Install a good ripping blade when ripping hardwood. Things will go much easier.

Step three: set fence to desired width plus some margin for flattening depending on your experience with the stock in question. I'd go at least 1/4" fat on 24" legs when splitting a piece of maple into quarters. Try jointing both sides and ripping a strip off the opposing side each time to balance tension. Sometimes it works better to control movement, sometimes not.

Step four: Buy or make a good shoe type push block and keep it handy at all times. Do not buy one of those silly things with the magnets in it. Do not push magnets into your saw blade. Reserve those shuffle board style push sticks for playing shuffle board and perhaps machines that don't kick back like the band saw. Don't ever approach something as ferocious as a TS with something as dainty as a push stick. Notice that lion tamers carry a chair and a whip, not a daisy and some bon bons.

Step five: rip away. I made some loose tenons just this morning that had to measure .270". No sweat with the push block. I did have to pull the splitter for material that thin. Last week I ripped 600LF of spline stock for T&G flooring that all had to measure .290" before sanding. Set the fence, grab the push block, ....well you get the idea.

Step six: Ignore a jerk like me and make up your own mind about what is safe and how you like to work. I started doing this professionally a few years back, and that opened my eyes quite a bit wider, but may make my perspective irrelevant to your situation. I have to work SAFE and FAST to earn my keep (I can't ignore either requirement). I would try the push block/shoe/what ever you want to call it. I make mine from a sandwich of two pieces of 3/4" MDf glued together. I run them right through the blade as needed and throw them away as soon as they get worn. The TS blade is pushing Up and BACK at you , so you need to be pushing FORWARD and DOWN at it, and on thin rips near the end of the cut a push block is the only way to do this. A push stick will hold the front DOWN but it is the back of the cut that is trying to lift on you. If your guard stops you from using the block, you have to decide what is less safe, using a guard but having no control over the stock, or loosing the guard maintaining complete control over the stock.

[Rod Sheridan]

I find it difficult to believe that you cannot make a push shoe out of 1/4" or 3/8" ply that will fit between the guard and the fence.

Make a suitable push shoe, keep the guard and splitter in place.

Regards, Rod.

[glenn bradley]

I have ripped fairly short pieces with confidence using a GRR-Ripper.

Yep, you're all set. Have a splitter in place, feed them through and grab your Grr-Ripper for the last foot. Done deal.

[Dave Cav]

When building the Hal Taylor rocking chair, I ripped a couple dozen or more 1/8" thick strips on the TS using a sacrificial push shoe. All the narrow cuts were on the fence side for consistency. That's how Hal recommended it be done and it worked beautifully. The portion of the blade that was above the stock cut a single groove in the push shoe but my hand was always well clear of the blade and I kept my body clear of any potential kickback path, although there was little to no danger of one occurring with that method.

Yup. I ripped up a bunch of 1/4" x 1 1/2" walnut and purpleheart accent strips for the cutting board project using a temporary push stick made out of perforated hardboard and threw it away when I was finished. I tell the students not to worry about cutting up the push sticks; that's why we make them out of wood (and make a new batch every year).